Rubber plantation in Sumatra

 Rubber Plantation in Sumatra

Have you ever seen a rubber plantation? - I haven't. I only know about rubber plantations from videos that were shown to me on TikTok or Instagram. 

Here is a short backstory before I start with the actual topic:

Village life in Bukit Lawang takes place along the river. 🌊Many Indonesians come to Bukit Lawang to spend a few days on vacation and get some distance from everyday life.

We were often asked for selfies; since Kristina and I are fair-skinned and blond, we were obviously the exotic😂. If it is not a selfie, one is stubbornly looked at or is secretly photographed. Since the direct approach was us but a lot rather. 📸

There are no ATMs in Bukit Lawang, and you can nowhere pay with the card.🏧 

There is only one office where you can withdraw money for a relatively high fee. The easiest way is to stock up with enough cash on the course or at the airport and pay everything in cash on the spot. 

Behind the accommodation, where we had stayed one night, the jungle begins.🌿🦧 

First, the path leads up a steep slope and then through a rubber plantation. Our tour guides explained that our shoes were made from these raw materials in Indonesia. I was fascinated!🥾✨

Now, I'll explain something about the rubber tree and its origin.

Natural rubber, formerly called simply rubber, is a rubbery substance in many different rubber plants' milky sap (latex). The rubber-bearing latex is usually a milky liquid, but it can also be in semi-solid form in the plants. The milky juice tastes similar to sweet cream and is edible.🍯

Origin:

Natural rubber is now obtained in Southeast Asia and Central and South America, mainly from the rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) originally found only in the Amazon basin.🌏🌱

Extraction:

Natural rubber is mainly extracted from the rubber tree. The liquid, also known as latex or milky sap, is obtained by scratching the bark of the tree.🪵 This liquid runs along the bark into a bowl, becoming a solid, sticky substance after a certain time.🪹 However, this is not always the case with other species that provide rubber. Every week in the plantations, every single bowl is emptied, and everything is collected in a large container in the middle of the plantation.🪣

World production:

The top five producer countries of natural rubber are Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, and the People's Republic of China. Among them, Indonesia ranks second with 1,792,000 tons of rubber.🇮🇩 Far behind Thailand with 3,030,000 tons of rubber.🇹🇭 

I see my shoes purchased for 30,000 IDR (1.80€) as unjustified.💰 Now that I know what is behind it, it is unbelievable how cheaply the products are sold. You wouldn't even begin to sell a pair of shoes for so little money in Germany.👞👠👟

See you next time!👋🏻

Love Patricia 💗